


Seven Digits

by cindyjeans



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Awkwardness, Building Relationship, Gay Panic, M/M, Slow Burn, Wrong number, also very slow build up, and lance fuck's up, another god damn college AU, in which they have yet to meet, its going to get really awkward really fast, klance, repeating how slow it is
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-11-05
Updated: 2016-11-13
Packaged: 2018-08-29 06:16:05
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,233
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8478439
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cindyjeans/pseuds/cindyjeans
Summary: "Ah, hey! It's Lance! You know from English Lit.? Look, I know this is sudden but hear me out. No, no, don't say anything, just listen! Ok.I think you and me...I think we could totally be a thing, ya know? You, me, we. Get what I'm saying? Let's just make it official and try out a date? I can meet you tomorrow at the fountain center in Briar Park. Let's say, 4' o clock? Dinner, movie, it's all on me. Go ahead and think about it. I'll be waiting either way!" ... Who WAS that? A number Keith didn’t recognize shone brightly on his screen beside the blue faceless silhouette.---------Lance only had to dial seven digits to make the call and somehow he managed to even get that wrong. Stuck going on a date with a weird guy he had never met before couldn't have been less awkward...well, maybe it could have been if it hadn't been for that kiss.





	1. Prologue - Wrong Number

"Oh man, he's gonna do it!"

"He's not gonna do it."

"He's doing it!" Hunk clenched his hand into a fist and gave it a hearty pump in the air as he cheered on the lanky teen at his side, "you got this, Lance."

The dark skinned boy, allowed his lips to twitch into a grateful smile that didn't quite reach his uncertain eyes before turning a scowl towards the killjoy in the room.

Pidge gave him an unimpressed look of skepticism and rolled their eyes in response.

"Well, it's clear someone here loves me!" Lance hissed at the smaller teen, certain to emphasis that it was NOT Pidge he was talking about.  
  
Pidge merely adjusted their large thin-rimmed glasses. The messy light brown hair seemed to bounce with a persona of its own as the shorter teen shrugged their shoulders. “I’m just saying, you’re a bit of a flake, Lance.”

“A flake!?” Lance shrieked in disbelief. His strained voice was loud enough to elicit the attention of other college students who were loitering around the University courtyard. A small group of girls snickered nearby and muttered behind their hands as their eyebrows raised in amusement. Some others seemed to tuck themselves farther away deeper into the little slivers of shade they had found beneath the ever looming cedar trees. For a freshman the older teen had already earned himself a bit of a reputation. Loud. Annoying. Brash.

Lance ignored them. He huffed, scrunching up his nose in response before turning back to Hunk and allowing melodramatic tears to pool at the corners of his eyes. "And, thanks, buddy."

Despite having only known each other for a short time, the three teens had grown incredibly close since starting university together.  
  
Hunk Garrett. Nineteen. The bigger boy of the three, in girth and heart, was always willing to help and offer words of advice when the other two needed it most. He was a young man with a heart of gold, and an inner strength like no other. While his size was one that might be found intimidating, his smile and ever compassionate eyes were two things that could put anyone at ease.

Pidge Gundersund. Eighteen. Standoffish and brash, quick to offer a harsh quip or retaliation, they were a bit harder to place. Their mind was sharp and their tongue sharper. Pidge didn't seem like an individual for nonsense despite being the youngest of the three. It was the little things that they did that really allowed for their true loyalty and friendship to shine through.

And finally, Lance McClain. Nineteen. Loud, fun-loving, and competitive. The dark-skinned boy was already known amongst many of his classmates as a complete goof. A term that Lance came to embrace and shrug off with a simple laugh and quickly dropped rebuttal.

Lance could not imagine college without Hunk or Pidge at his side. Through thick and thin, the two stuck by him during all of the 'hardships' this semester had to offer. And the dark-skinned teen's personality certainly reigned him a good many hardships. Lance's competitive and fun loving nature found the boy waking up at more after parties than he would have cared to admit. If Hunk and Pidge weren’t there to give him a hand when he needed them most, Lance wasn’t sure what sort of spot he would be in right now.

With Hunk's reassurance Lance reclaimed his vigor and looked down at the piece of crumpled paper in his hand.

A sloppy scrawl of writing etched on the back of a textbook receipts was Lance's latest prize. Its creases from where the boy had gripped It a bit too tightly while dashing back to his friends were apparent. The blue ballpoint ink was cracked and smudged in some places, but still readable. The messy chicken scratch wrote out seven digits.

Lance McClain would tell you, with a haughty smile, how a lady killer like himself never needed help acquiring a phone number from a beautiful woman. With his most dashing grin and that vibrant personality of his, he would go on to say, Allura was just playing hard to get.  
In reality, it had taken a lot of grueling and begging to actually coax those precious digits from Shiro. Lance had begged and begged until finally his classmate cracked. Shiro had told the lanky teen that if he needed to hear the rejection for himself to move on, than he was no longer going to hold back. Lance couldn't possibly have flashed a bigger smile at the time as he scribbled out the numbers that Shiro read them off to him. 'Please! Have a bit more faith, Shiro~ Watch how a master woos the ladies!' Lance had boasted, giving Shiro a quick wink before dashing off. The groan from the taller young man was audible even as the lanky teen turned away, and made Lance grin all the more as he rounded the corner to return to Pidge and Hunk’s side.

He felt a bit less confident now.

A bead of sweat spotted Lance's brow as he bit at his bottom lip. His palm was sweaty as it clutched at his phone like a lifeline. The receipt paper shuddered as his other hand shook nervously. Swallowing thickly, Lance released his bottom lip, which was now looking pretty swollen and grit his teeth as he set his fingers into motion. His fingertips whizzed by hastily, nervous and eager to get this over with quick. He fumbled clumsily, but only for a moment, before thumbing the call button.

_The plan was simple._  
_Dial up Allura._  
_Put on your smoothest voice._  
_Ask her out._  
_Be awesome, be charming._  
_Hang up._

Hunk beamed with a toothy grin and leaned forward, giving Lance a reassuring thumbs up with both hands. Pidge cocked a brow allowing a smirk to spread over their lips, still certain he would fail.

 _Be smooth, Lance._ The phone rang. _Be suave._ It rang again. _Don't fuck this up._ The phone rang again.

Lance could feel an uncomfortable bubbling of anxiousness in the pit of his stomach as a click resounded over the speaker of his phone. _Do it now, don't hesitate!_  
Before she had a chance to utter a single syllable of the word 'hello', Lance interjected. He was nervous and floundering and his big mouth was getting in the way again. Shit.

"Ah, hey! It's Lance! You know from English Lit.? Look, I know this is sudden but hear me out. No, no, don't say anything, just listen! Ok.  
I think you and me...I think we could totally be a thing, ya know? You, me, we. Get what I'm saying? Let's just make it official and try out a date? I can meet you tomorrow at the fountain center in Briar Park. Let's say, 4' o clock? Dinner, movie, it's all on me. Go ahead and think about it. I'll be waiting either way!"

Sucking in a breath, Lance quickly mashed the red phone on his touchscreen with his thumb. _Shit, shit, shit._  
He exhaled heavily as all the butterflies in his stomach seemed to scatter to seperate ends of his body. A huge triumphant grin tugged at the corner of his lips, despite the burning sensation in his face and ears.

He did it! Not quite how he planned, but he did it.

Hunk wooped loudly and clapped a hand on Lance's shoulder giving him a little congratulatory squeeze. Pidge meanwhile shook their head, unable to suppress a smile, "Wow, Lance. I didn't think you had it in you."

 

\-------

 

The university library was the perfect model of silence. The only sound that seemed to flutter through the air was the occasional clacking of fingertips against keyboards from the small work cubicles along the wall. It was a calming almost therapeutic atmosphere after the stifling bustle of the overcrowded hallways and lecture rooms.

One particular cubicle was being occupied by a dark haired freshman with pale skin who was just on the brink of dozing off. His eyelids were heavy, and his head was beginning to nod into his trigonometry textbook. The words and figures on the page were doing a funny thing where they morphed into fuzzy little shapes and danced across the musty second-hand pages that smelled like old paper and bookshelf dust…

His cell phone rang. It was an agitating jingle that was picked without a care from the default menu, deemed ‘least annoying’ and then promptly forgotten.

With a fumbling hand the boy jerked into wakefulness and hastily grabbed at his cell. Murmurs of bothered students nearby hissed in exasperation and agitation while the ringtone continued to squeal through the silence. The older teen fumbled a moment more sliding down as he all but fell out of his chair in an attempt to get at his phone to put an end to the noise.

Keith Kogane stared at the screen in confusion once he had finally wrestled it from his pocket. Who WAS that? A number he didn’t recognize shone brightly on his screen beside the blue faceless silhouette. With another moment’s hesitation and an annoyed hiss from the cubicle to his left he pressed the green call button and put the phone to his ear.

… A boy was speaking. He had a fluid voice that was just touched with the lightest hint of nervousness. And was that excitement?

… Oh no, he MUST have the wrong number. Keith didn’t call people nor did he ever receive calls. The dark haired boy opened his mouth to interject, to say SOMETHING. But the guy on the other end continued to prattle on. His voice made Keith’s brows knit together in annoyance. Just shut up for one min-wait… a date?

… wait hang on!

The phone clicked as the call was abruptly ended as suddenly as it had begun.

Keith felt alarm creep throughout him as he pulled the phone away from his ear as if it burned him. The screen taunted him as it blinked with the unfamiliar number. 

Lance he said...from English Lit?

Keith attempted fruitlessly to put the name to a face to no avail. That was the class he spent most often with his head against his folded arms, nodding off or just plain sleeping through.

Dark eyebrows knitted together over cool blue-grey eyes as the boy adopted a perplexed expression. Did he talk to this Lance? Was this a person he should recall? Keith felt a new wave of alarm mixed with embarrassment gooseflesh over the back of his neck and color his cheeks. God, he was bad enough with just talking to people, and now he couldn't even remember doing it at all.  

Keith looked down at his phone again with uncertainty. The cool metal of the device was a familiar weight in his hand as it displayed a very unfamiliar number in the 'recent calls' menu.

Should he call them back? 

Biting his lip, the dark haired teen set down his phone. He was awash with so many feelings of uncertainty, he felt at a loss of what to do next. 


	2. Unlucky in Love

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance fucked up.  
> He knew he fucked up.  
> He could feel it.

The gentle babbling of the fountain that stood at the center of Briar Park was an ever present sound to the park goers who walked by or lounged in the shade. Cascades of cool water splashed along the stone monument as it poured from the open mouths of three stone fish frozen in time.

Lance scuffed the rubber of his trainer against the base of the fountain as he fidgeted. One of his hands was stuffed deep into his pocket while the other held his phone. The group chat was as lively as ever for a Saturday afternoon. Pidge was complaining about Hunk's ever-changing food pun screen name while Lance repeatedly typed and erased.

 

'guys, i'm so fucking aksjsjkdla...' Lance finally typed out, mashing out letters to get his frustration across.

'dude, just be chill' 

'sinking ship'

'PIDGE!'

 

Lance scrunched up his nose at the exchange, knowing he shouldn't have expected more. Closing the app, he checked the clock for the umpteenth time. It was only 4:09 PM, but he had been waiting well over half an hour. Not to mention the time he spent prior to waiting, in which he had swung by the theater and snagged two tickets for what he could only describe to be the cheesiest titled movie he had ever heard: Unlucky in Love. All the chicks in his class were going on about some studly hearthrob's role in the season's number one romance comedy.

He had this in the bag, but that reassuring line still didn't ease his nerves.

To Lance McClain, waiting was the worst!

Stuffing away his phone Lance ran a hand over his eyes and pinched his temple before swinging on his heel and staring down over the fountain's edge. 

A somewhat awkward looking teen stared back at him. He had short brown hair that refused to be tamed despite being brushed down numerous times that morning. Some stray hairs above his ears wavered in the breeze, taunting him. Deep blue eyes narrowed as he patted down the rebellious locks of hair. He met his reflection’s gaze. 'Eyes like sapphires' his mother used to always tease before calling him a gem and planting a kiss upon his forehead.

It only took two drinks before Lance would boast about his eyes. 'Lady slaying eyes' he would say, batting his eyelashes at Pidge with one of his typical smirks. He usually earned himself a good punch for that one.

The water in the fountain rippled as droplets splashed down from the scaled stone guardians. He looked himself over quickly as his reflection swam in and out of view. A crisp button up shirt open to reveal a subtly striped t-shirt underneath with some of Lance's best tear-less jeans.

If you were to ask him, he would say he looked mighty fine.

 

The word ‘handsome’ lingered in the back of Keith’s mind as his footsteps slowed some distance from the fountain’s edge. There was only one other individual who was loitering around the park center when he arrived. It must be Lance. Lance with the slightly tousled hair and deep eyes who stood worrying his bottom lip between his teeth. Keith found his brows knitting together, a perplexed look entering his eyes. Lance was tall and thin, just a touch more than himself. He had darker skin that made Keith very aware of just how pale his own was. Despite wearing something equally casual to what the boy at the fountain wore, Keith couldn’t help but feel over dressed. He wore tight black skinny jeans that tucked into deep burgundy calf-high leather boots. His hair was swept up into a tight ponytail in a matching red hairtie. Around his waist draped a dark plaid shirt, removed from his shoulders so that he might enjoy the autumn air a bit more. At his neck Keith wore a plain gold chain that gently bounced against the black t-shirt he had chosen.

Lance looked… well. Keith frowned.

Lance’s face was very unfamiliar.

The dark-haired teen felt a wave of uncertainty wash over him yet again, as he began to question for the sixth time why he was there.

His pride told him to ‘suck it up’. If someone had asked him out the least he could do would be to go meet them and let them know what was what. Right? 

Lance hadn’t even noticed Keith’s approach, he was admiring his reflection in the fountain, tugging absentmindedly at his shirt and brushing a hand over his short brown hair.

“Um…hello?” The words spilled from Keith’s lips sending a chill up his spine as he realized how uncomfortable his voice sounded. This was already awkward.

Lance spun on his heel at the sound of a voice, his movement was quick but fluid, as if stop and go was how he usually did things. His face was lit up with a huge smile that flashed his teeth and ever so slightly crinkled his eyes. Keith almost took a step back at it, the smile disarming him in every possible way.

“O-oh…hi?” the corners of Lance’s lips faltered and the smile began to wither as he looked at the other boy in confusion.

There was a shared moment of awkward silence between the two as both boys seemed to scrutinize over the other.

Keith finally broke the silence with a heavy exhaled breath, “I got your message. Well, your call. And I…well, I don’t know why I came really, but I’m here, and… I’m not sure what I was expecting. Or what you were expecting. To be honest I don’t really know you. I—”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, wait!”

Keith’s voice was drowned out as he was cut short by Lance’s interjection. Despite himself, Keith couldn’t keep his eyes from narrowing at being interrupted. His cheeks burned, his stomach churned, and he didn’t know where to set his gaze.

“My message!?” Lance all but shrieked, his high-pitched voice spooking a sparrow from a nearby bush. He waved his hands in front of him as if he was trying to clear the air. Keith followed Lance’s phone as he waved it from side to side in his grasp, not really sure what else to settle his eyes on. He didn’t particularly feel brave enough to meet Lance’s gaze.

“I didn’t call _you_!” Lance’s voice held a flustered desperation to it that made Keith think he was more trying to convince himself than Keith.

“Um, yes you did. You’re Lance, aren’t you?”

“…oh god…”

“I got a call yesterday…”

“Oh god…!”

“Saying to meet a ‘Lance’ here for a… for a date.”

“Dios mío!”

Keith’s brows knit together, annoyed, “WHAT?”

Lance's attention had fallen from the boy in front of him as he fidgeted with his phone. He scrolled through his apps as if his phone had all of the answers. Not getting the conclusion he wanted the dark-skinned teen roughly shoved the small device into his pocket and buried his hands into his hair as he threw back his head. “This can’t be happening! That message wasn’t for _you_!”

“Keith.” The other teen corrected curtly, his nose scrunching up in response to Lance’s distress.

“What?

“My name is Keith.”

Lance looked back at the other boy and he could see just how upset he was. Cool grey eyes were narrowed while his lips pursed into a thin unreadable line. Keith’s arms were folded tightly across his chest. He looks pissed and maybe…disappointed?

Lance swallowed thickly, “Look, I’m sorry. I…” the teen sucked in a breath and rolled his shoulder into a shrug, “I was trying to get a date with Allura. I had finally managed to get her number from Shiro, and man, that took forever. I was kind of nervous dialing her, I mean, she is like really hot. And it happens to the best of us. I…I must have dialed you by mistake.” Lance was rambling and managed to say so much in a single breath, he wasn't even sure if Keith had heard half of it. Lance offered the most sincere and apologetic smile he could muster. He didn’t want a total stranger hating him for something so stupid.

Keith could feel something inside of him deflate when Lance smiled. He unfolded his arms and let his hands fall to his sides. “It’s…whatever. I’m just going to go…” He said after a long moment, his voice softer now.

Lance fucked up.

He knew he fucked up.

He could feel it.

“Look, I’m sorry. Wait!” Before he could even process what he was going to do or say, Lance was reaching for Keith. He reached out a hand for him and grabbed the other boy about the elbow.

Keith had just begun to turn away before he froze as he felt a touch on his arm. It wasn’t a firm hold but it was enough to make him stop. He slowly slid his cool blue-grey eyes back over to Lance.

“Sorry. This is all my fault.”

“Obviously.”

“I fucked up.”

“Yeah.”

Lance grit his teeth, “Fuck. Will you just give me a damn second to apologize without interrupting!”

Keith made a face and tapped the tip of his boot against the cobblestone to show his impatience. Lance sighed and gave a roll of his eyes. “I’m really sorry, okay. I wasted your time.” Lance paused to see if Keith had anything more to say. The dark haired teen really knew how to get under Lance’s skin. The last thing he wanted was to owe this weirdo something later on. “I’ll make it up to.” He said after a moment when he was certain Keith wasn’t going to interrupt again.

“Oh yeah, how?”

A sly grin spread across Lance’s lips. It was a smirk that sent a shiver down Keith’s spine, making him internally cringe. This boy obviously had something up his sleeve. Something devious. What he proposed next was the last thing Keith had expected however.

“Wanna see a movie?”


	3. Mr. Talkative

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “You bought tickets to a pretty BAD movie. I bet you didn’t even look up any reviews beforehand.”

"I _can't_ believe you made me sit through that!"

"You're the one who agreed to it!"  
Lance wiped fresh tears from the corners of his eyes as his shoulders shook with mirth. "But, come ON! That ending was--"

"Awful!" Keith finished, his voice high as he interjected. "It was awful! The whole movie was just..."

Putting on a bright grin, Lance couldn't help but feel a bit of delight at Keith's obvious distress. From what he could tell the other boy didn’t allow for much emotion to cross his face, so seeing Keith finally loosen up gave Lance great satisfaction.  
As the dark skinned boy pushed his way past a small group of preteens heading into the theater hall he took a few sharp steps to the side, placing himself at Keith’s side. "Ah, I'm sure it could have been worse." Lance said in a tone that could only be described as reassuring.

The salty smell of popcorn still filled their nostrils as the two boys moved towards the theater exit. The smell was pungent, almost nauseating with the mix of sticky sweet candy. Keith's footsteps halted as he stopped to turn back to his movie companion, his expression was completely judgmental as if Lance's words had offended him. Despite his distaste to linger, the older teen scrunched up his nose at Lance, taking the moment to send him a chilling glare.

Lance laughed, his voice cutting the air like a bell as it chimed with genuine amusement, "But, Keith!" Lance murmured, his voice melting into a tone that caught him off guard. In a mere second, Lance's voice was silky and soft as it goaded him, totally different from before. Accompanied with that laugh, Keith felt his resolve slip away from him as his expression adopted an edge of confusion.

Lance draped his hands over Keith's shoulder lacing his fingers together, before muttering to him, "Keith, how can you think like that? With those eyes. Those cold eyes. We were supposed to be something together."  
His hot breath tickled Keith's ear and sent an odd ripple down his spine, as Lance leaned his body in close. It was like the dark skinned teen had become a completely different person as he batted his eyelashes seductively and pouted his lips.  
A heat blossomed across his cheeks as Keith licked his lips nervously.

A whole minute seemed to tick by, Keith looking bewildered while Lance looked downright devilish. It wasn't until Lance let out a loud snort, and bowed his head as his shoulders shook again with unrestrained laughter. “Y-your face!” he laughed.

Keith’s eyebrows knit together, annoyed. It had dawned on him that the lines the other boy was delivering was straight from the movie they had just stepped out of. _Of course_ , Lance was using it against him now.

Lance pulled back, beaming from ear to ear, finally over his laughing fit. “Pretty good, huh? I had you going. That’s three years of drama for you.”

The other boy scoffed and turned away, making his way out the door.

“Oooh, don’t be like that… Keith, was it? Yeah. Don’t be like that, Keithy~” Lance continued to tease as he followed behind.

The theater opened up onto one of the small squares that downtown was known for. Oak trees and shrubbery lined small cobblestone paths that spread out like a miniature park before it gave way to paved streets.

Keith inhaled deeply, enjoying the crisp autumn air as it met him at the door. The sun was dipping below the horizon, painting the sky a deep shade of cobalt. With its descent came a slight chill to the air that hinted at the coming of winter. What little light the sky still had to offer, filtered helplessly through the branches of the oak trees and made kaleidoscopic shapes upon the stone below. In this new light, Keith looked to Lance, side-eyeing him.  
Lance was all limbs, Keith noted, as he watched him shiver and pull his shirt tighter around himself. Despite that, Keith still mused over the word he had thought of earlier: handsome. His hair was short and pleasantly tousled giving off an air of unrefined playfulness. He had deep blue eyes that always seemed to be thinned by a smile or a smirk, something that Keith was beginning to feel was very ‘Lance’. His lips were thin and looked soft, probably from all of Lance’s constant prattling.  
Even at that moment, Lance was going on about the movie they had watched.

“I dunno, I think if the chick really loved him and just told him that from the get go, none of that ridiculousness on the plane would have ever needed to happen. Pining for someone for YEARS and not once telling anyone…who DOES that?”

Keith frowned.

“If only you didn’t open your mouth…” The words slipped out before he had a chance to restrain them.

Lance looked over to Keith, and made a face. It was a comical display of indignation, “Well, sorry, Mr. Talkative. I didn’t mean to interrupt your broody silence.”

“Do all of your dates fail this horrendously?” Keith mused aloud as he began to grin back.

“Fail!?” Lance repeated, his voice hitching. “What do you mean by that?”

Keith allowed his lips to twist into a smirk, “Well you messed up the number.”

“We’re done talking about that!” Lance huffed, his tone hurt and dismissive.

“You bought tickets to a pretty BAD movie. I bet you didn’t even look up any reviews beforehand.”

“Psh, and spoil the whole experience? Who even does that?”

Keith rolled his eyes and let out a short laugh.

Lance scoffed at the other boy, taking two long-legged steps ahead of Keith and planting himself firmly in front of him. “Ok, look. I am an awesome date~ Irresistible being around, some would say.” He said as he gestured to himself proudly with a hand.

“Lance…” Keith started to say before he was cut off.

“The ladies…they don’t know how to even handle my moves when we go out!”

Keith rolled his eyes a second time, before sliding back to lay on the other teen. “Lance.”

“You, Keith, are privileged to even go out on a date with me!” A haughty smirk ticking at the corners of the other boy’s lips told Keith he was far from done.

“ _Lance_ …!”

But it was too late, the in-ground water fountains had clicked on and shot tall streams of cool water into the air. One moment Lance was bragging about ‘his moves’ and the next moment his face was twisting into a silent scream of alarm as a jet of cold water shot up his spine, splashing him fully along his whole backside. A loud yelp escaped the dark-skinned teen’s lips.

“HOLY HELL! SHIT!”

Lance clumsily staggered forwards his limbs frantic and flailing, but it was too late. He was soaked and dripping.

Keith felt a ripple of laughter break from his lips as he watched an array of expressions cross the other boy’s face. He doubled over unable to help it as his simple laughter built into an uncontrollable fit.

 

\-----—

 

Despite the steady trickle of customers, the small coffeeshop was ideal for studying. It was cozy and warm, with pleasant music and aromas. The University students visited the shop often during heavy testing weeks to unwind and get a comfortable change of scenery. The old shop was decorated in a very homey manner, with mismatched chairs and sofas surrounding various tables.

Hunk had successfully managed to balance his mechanical pencil on his upper lip when Pidge cut in. “Hunk! Focus. We’re supposed to be studying.” The smaller teen reprimanded as they put down their textbook and picked up the iced expresso on the table.

Hunk sighed as he tilted his head to the side, letting his pencil fall to the wooden table with a low clatter. “Yeeeah, but it’s not as fun without Lance.”

“Studying isn’t supposed to be fun.” Pidge replied with a frown as they leaned back in their seat and made a face at the other.

Hunk sighed again and looked down at his Applied Composition textbook. Writing and getting all creative with his words was so far out of his league. Hunk and Pidge were heavily science driven in their courses of study, and it was always English and Writing that usually caused the two of them to flounder. Lance on the other hand was rather slick with turning a phrase to appeal to the professors.

Lance.

“I wonder how Lance is doing on his date,” Hunk commented brightly, glad to change the subject as he pulled out his phone. With a quick swipe of his finger he unlocked his screen.

The group chat glowed in the dim cafe lighting as it rested stagnant with no updates since 4:50 PM.

 

'sinking ship'

 

'PIDGE!'

 

— 4:49 PM ——————————

 

‘heading to the movies now’

 

‘Oh, have fun!’

 

‘kturning off phone. cantbtalkd’

 

Pidge shifted their deep brown eyes over to Hunk, glasses tilted and sliding down their nose. “It’s not that hard typing in a dark movie theater,” Pidge noted with a sigh as they closed their own textbook and nudged it forward on the table.

“He must have been really nervous or something.”

The smaller teen scoffed and sipped at their expresso, “Or—” But Hunk didn’t get to hear what else Pidge had to say about Lance and his date as their phone chimed in with an upbeat ringtone. Placing their mug on the table Pidge fished their phone from their pocket and held it up to their ear before hitting the call button. “What’s up, Shiro?”

“Oh, we are already studying… Downtown at the Coffee Block… Uh, yeah, you can join us… who did you want to bring?” Pidge hesitated in their conversation as their brow knitted together, making Hunk tilt his head slightly in curiosity. Pidge’s eyes slid over to Hunk and met his gaze, holding it for a moment, “Sure… Allura can come… okay, see you soon.”

Hunk leaned forward as the smaller teen tapped the call to end. A short silence hung in the air between them, broken by the question they both had on their minds.

“If Shiro is with Allura… then who’s on a date with Lance?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaand, I'm really drawing out this date... I hope you guys still enjoy it!  
> I'm trying to make sure I get a good amount of bonding into their date without over complicating things or overwriting about things that are unnecessary. Yes Hunk and Pidge are necessary.
> 
> And for anyone who is wondering, I am not assigning any sort of gender title or pronoun to Pidge FOR A REASON. No they are not trans in this fic, nor are they genderqueer or agender. I'm sorry if that steers away from your headcanons or what-have-you but please be considerate if you are going to comment about it.
> 
> As always, feedback and comments are always appreciated, it really keeps me motivated.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading!
> 
> First fanfic I've written in probably about 10 years. Let me know if you want to read more and if you like it, because I honestly don't know what I'm doing. A beta might be nice for future chapters. 
> 
> If you would like to tag me on twitter feel free to use the tag: #keithsdigits or @cindy_jeans


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